Why do some historians spend so much time on the subject of Joan wearing mans clothing?
Down through the years different scholars have tried to infer from the fact that Joan wore men’s clothing that she was either consciously or unconsciously a transvestite, bi-sexual, a lesbian or even that she was a-sexual. When George Sand wore men’s clothing, smoked big cigars and drank whiskey among her 19th century male literary contemporaries was she trying to make an unconscious statement that she was a transvestite, bi-sexual, a lesbian or even that she was a-sexual? Was she trying to deny her womanhood or diminish her femininity? No, of course not! Her purpose was purely practical. By donning men’s clothing, and using a male ‘nom de plume,’ George Sand, was able to gain access into the male dominated world of 19th century French literature, that was otherwise closed to women. By using male clothing she was able to associate with these men. Over time she won their acceptance – and with their acceptance she was treated as an equal – she was taken seriously. A case in point. Even t
